For the writing of this book we have relied on fifty-four combined years of managing
our own residential properties as well as the real estate of others. In the interim we
have served respectively as editor and secretary for a Rental Association and have
listened to hundreds of landlords across the United States and Canada. Landlord Tenant
relations, we have learned, can be very demoralizing to the uninformed.

We found the landlord's biggest concern is not managing and maintaining their rental
properties, but handling the people who live in them. Most landlords will admit privately
that one-third of their tenants leave much to be desired. When we purchased our first
rental properties and started dealing with tenants, our experiences were the same. We
spent many years chasing the rent and trying to keep tenants in line, then spent weeks
cleaning up the mess and the bills many left behind.

Today, less than one in ten of our tenants create any difficulties, and serious rent
payment problems are almost non-existent. The overwhelming majority of our tenants also
leave their rentals clean and undamaged when they move.

The reason for our lack of problems is our method of dealing with tenants. We handle
them the same as one would handle a planting for his house or garden. If one spends a
little time selecting and cultivating, few problems and great bounty follow. As anyone
with a green thumb knows, however, there are always a few plantings that go astray. They
must be brought under control quickly or pulled up by the roots and discarded. Some
tenants must be dealt with in a similar manner.

Whether you have a single home or a multiplex for rent, the contents of this book will
provide many easily adaptable methods for attracting, choosing and dealing with tenants.
Furthermore, you will gain a understanding of how today's landlord/tenant relations have
come about and an understanding of the landlord's ignored and overlooked rights. With this
knowledge you will not only reduce present or future problems, but add to your
profitability. That is why you are in the business.

The first part of this guide is devoted to attracting profitable tenants, the second
part to transplanting them, the third part to nurturing them and a small fourth part to
uprooting any possible bad seeds.

This "book" is a guide designed to provide accurate and authoritative
information. It is sold with the understanding that neither the publishers nor the authors
are engaged in rendering legal advice. Because of various state and local laws, detailed
legal research, or expert assistance may be required in determining the exact laws of your
locality. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a
competent professional should be sought.